


Machine

by ivarara



Series: Maxis [19]
Category: Warframe
Genre: spoiler-ish for post Sacrifice!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2019-05-29
Packaged: 2020-03-26 15:34:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19008703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ivarara/pseuds/ivarara
Summary: Max is upset. Buffy is there to help, the wise man he is.





	Machine

**Author's Note:**

> Buffy is a hellion, for those who don't know!

‘Cause I’ve been wonderin’  
When you’re gonna see I’m not for sale;  
‘Cause I’ve been questionin’  
When you’re gonna see I’m not a   
Part of your machine

 

“Hey, Buffy?”

A grunt in reply.

“You ever think back on something and go, ‘Wow, I can’t believe I willingly did that for someone’?”

“That’s called hindsight.”

“Like, with no real reason to? Just because they said you should, so you did?”

“That’s still hindsight.”

“‘Cause I’ve been thinking about things I used to do. Things I did.”

“Again, still hindsight.”

A pause, broken only by a defeated sigh and a whispered, “I was dumb to follow her like I did.”

It prompts the hellion to look over. Max is slumped back against the wall, eyes downcast.

The mining asteroid is, as usual, surprisingly quiet for their area. There aren’t many other lancers milling about beside them. Trouvaille sits at her feet, following any of the faint clangs that echo throughout the base. Ivara stands off to the side, twiddling an arrow from her quiver in her hands absentmindedly

“What do you mean by that? The Lotus?”

Max nods miserably.

Buffy nods. “To be fair, you didn’t have all that much of a choice.”

“But I did, though.”

“In what way?”

“I could have just… said no to some things. A lot of things. Other Tenno did. Other Tenno realized what was up long before I even thought about it.”

Buffy knew there was no point in stopping her now. Max rarely let her harsher feelings out, and knew it ended up bottling up too much for her. 

“She said something, I did it. Didn’t even think about why I should or shouldn’t. Just went blindly. And look where it got me. She left. The other Tenno left. Everyone left.”

“Fair, but you did end up here instead. Look at it that way.”

“Yeah.” Max scrubbed a hand over her face. “Not to be fake-deep, but you know what analogy sounds accurate for it?”

A questioning hum.

“‘Like a cog in a machine.’ That’s what I felt like. She may have initially seen us as the kids she’d never had, but as time went on, she saw us as tools. Just parts of a machine, doing her work.”

Ivara snaps to attention, the words finally clicking together for her. She looks at Max incredulously as she rants on.

“She knew there wouldn’t really be a chance at total peace in the System. So she just sent us out to take care of any issues that came up that might ‘upset the balance of power’. Like she had reason to worry about   
the entire System, when she was never even truly there.” She angrily scuffs a rugged boot through the dirt. “I got abandoned in the Derelicts, and suddenly all the care she had was directed elsewhere. She couldn’t be bothered to worry about each Tenno. Nah, she only cared about what we did as a whole.”

Buffy knew the feeling. Doing work, constantly training, for what? Because someone higher-up said to, and they were told to never question why?

“That’s the only reason I made it here, was because Zus and the Hounds happened to be making their way through at the time. If they didn’t, I probably would have rotted away there. Nobody would have noticed. Nobody would have actually cared.”

“Don’t dwell too long on things that have already happened.” Buffy looks sideways at her. “Yes, you were left behind. But you were also found. You’re now surrounded by a group, Warframe and kubrow and all, that cares about your well-being and whereabouts. You saw what happened when you were caught in the Corpus facility and separated: everyone worried. They missed you. Eagerly awaited for your return.”

Max hums, turning the words over in her head.

“And, if you haven’t noticed, Zus pays attention to what missions he sends you on. If he  
knew it would be intensely upsetting or difficult, he avoids sending you if possible. He tries to not force you into things, much to others’ chagrin. But he understands what you’ve been through already.”

Max has gone silent, taken to gently scuffing the toe of her boot through the fur on Trouvaille’s back. He basks in the attention, squirming to get the scratches where he wants them.

“In other words,” Buffy goes on. “You’re not necessarily part of a ‘machine’ here. You’re part of a team.”

Silence, before Max lightly scoffs. “Buffy, that’s the most cliche thing I’ve ever heard come out of you.” 

“‘Cliche’ it may be, but it’s also true.”

“Yeah.” Max heaves a sigh. “That’s probably also the most I’ve ever heard you speak in one go. You’re like a fortune cookie.”

Ivara’s shoulders shrug in a mock of a laugh. Buffy throws a glare at her, but it’s not filled with any real heat.

“Hm. So long as you don’t call me that ‘fortune cookie’ in front of others, I’ll let that slide. You’re the reason I’m called ‘Buffy’. I do not need to start being called ‘Cookie’ or something ridiculous like that, miss.”


End file.
